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When ordering a King Cake, Crescent City sweet seekers can no longer uniformly expect the standard braided cinammon twist with more or less the same flavor profile. King Cakes have become a creative canvass for adventurous bakers across New Orleans. Allow NoDef to help you choose which will satisfy your palette. We combined three years of King Cake coverage for one ultimate guide. After reading these diverse offerings, you may even want the baby:

Welcome to the Intoxicology Report, a drinking journey with a few recommendations and a few lessons. This column is dedicated to my experience consuming one variety of alcohol for seven days straight. This time, we take on gin, my favorite spirit. No, it doesn’t always taste like Christmas trees. Yes, it is the basis for some of the best cocktails from which you ever need take a lingering sip.

Tomorrow (8.16) is National Rum Day! Last month, we rounded up the best spots for rum-focused frozen brews for National Daiquiri Day, honoring one of the signature rum-focused drinks of New Orleans. Want some more boozy options to break up the hump day blues? Whether a mojito, a rum punch, a piña colada, or a simple rum & coke, celebrate this most hallowed of days with NoDef's round-up of the best spots in the Big Easy for this spirit.

If you’re looking for some sweet relief from the work week blues, look no further than Bywater watering hole Bacchanal. On Friday (8.4), the premiere spot to wine and dine al fresco offers New Orleanians a very worthwhile excuse to cut out of work and get the weekend started early with a midday feast with Wayward Owl Brewing Company.

It's mid-summer, which means you might have had your fill of crawfish boils by now. Turn your attention to another fruit of the sea with this weekend's upscale shrimp boil at The Ace Hotel. On Saturday (7.29), chefs from three top restaurants around town will go head to head to benefit the Audubon G.U.L.F. Institute.

Welcome to the Intoxicology Report, a drinking journey with a few recommendations and a few lessons. This column is dedicated to my experience consuming one variety of alcohol for seven days straight. Ahead of National Tequila Day on July 24th, we begin with the spirit from our southern neighbor, and a favorite of 20-somethings everywhere. Shots!

Today (7.19) is National Daiquiri Day! Whether you prefer more upscale versions or you are more partial to the Queen Latifah-approved drive-through variety, the daiquiri is arguably one of the signature drinks of New Orleans. The standard recipe includes rum, sugar, and lime, but these days pretty much any variation boozy and slushy makes the cut. Celebrate this most hallowed of days with NoDef's round-up of the best spots in the Big Easy (er, Big Freezy) for this cool beverage.

We’re in the thick of New Orleans’ summer season, and how better to beat the heat than with some cold sweet treats? The folks at Freezy Street, a new Marigny dessert outpost, are here to help with some Instagram-friendly ice cream creations. In just three days since the Saturday opening of their St. Claude Ave. brick and mortar, Adam Enterkin and Frances LaMagna have seen New Orleanians go crazy for their handmade rolled ice cream.

New Orleans is a city well-loved for it’s food, but not as well known for its sweets outside of cake-y creations like beignets, bread pudding, and King Cake. If you live in the Big Easy, chances are there is a certain sugary treat that is rather ubiquitous in your life: the praline. The humble praline is a staple in this city, and its sweet influence has finally garnered it it’s very own national holiday on June 24th.

You know what we here at NoDef love about these craft beers, man? We get older, but they stay the same taste. This weekend, Second Line Brewing will re-release a real crowd favorite: an IPA brew as smooth as Mr. McConaughey himself.